


Up Above the World You Fly

by Hamyheikki



Category: The Worst Witch (TV 2017)
Genre: Banter, F/F, Fluff and Humor, Hackle Summer Trope Challenge 2020, Stranded
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:53:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25736104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hamyheikki/pseuds/Hamyheikki
Summary: After a trip to the nearby town, Ada fails to return in time. And yet, Hecate can sense her presence inside the school's borders.Concerned, she sets off to find exactly what is keeping her wife from coming back to the castle.
Relationships: Amelia Cackle | Ada Cackle/Hardbroom
Comments: 8
Kudos: 29
Collections: The Hackle Summer Trope Challenge





	Up Above the World You Fly

**Author's Note:**

> For the Hackle Summer Challenge 2020, week 3. Prompt being "Stranded"

It had been a tiring morning, and it wasn’t even past 10:00 am. Sighing by herself, Hecate slid another pile of marked papers to the side and took a quick sip of the now cold cup of tea. Beginning of a new school year was never a relaxed occasion. There were last minute tasks to be handled, and despite all the preparations made beforehand, something was bound to turn up during the starting weeks of the semester.

It wouldn’t be an academy for young witches if it didn’t.

However, surprisingly enough, a student is not responsible for the first anomaly of the routine this time. Instead it’s Dimity who pops her head through the open door to Hecate’s office, frowning as she takes a quick look around the room.

“Ms. Cackle’s not back yet?”

Hecate arched her brow, halting the pen in her grip. “Should she be?” Ada had been summoned to a two days long meet-up in a village nearby, apparently relating to a new student joining the academy in a few months. There were some specific arrangements they’d have to talk over before that, and Ada had agreed to meet the parents outside the school’s walls. _ ‘A more relaxed atmosphere’ _ had been her justification, and Hecate had seen no reason to argue her point. Much less if it meant it’d save  _ her  _ for having to partake. She was more than happy to take on any duties coming along with the role of a deputy, but guardian meetings were not at the top of her list. Thus they’d agreed that while Ada was gone, Hecate would act as a replacement during her absence. A standard way they’d operated many years already.

And the reason why Hecate was now startled to realize it had indeed been an whole hour since Ada was due back. 

Dimity spoke out again, a crease of worry deepening by the minute. “You haven’t seen her?”

Shaking her head, Hecate stood up from behind the desk. “No, not since she departed.” She frowned as well. “Has  _ anyone  _ seen her within an hour?”

“No one I’ve talked to,” Dimity said and shrugged. “I figured she was here with you. She usually is.”

True enough, although Hecate was not too keen to clarify exactly  _ why  _ that was. “You have checked with the other teachers?”

“Yeah. Not a trace.”

The weighing feeling in the bottom of Hecate’s stomach grew. Ada was not one to run late without a notice. Especially when they were in the middle of the mania of a new semester. Surely, if something had come up, she would have informed Hecate? A quick mirror call or a maglet message would have been more than enough.

Slowly, and with determined purpose, Hecate shut her eyes and reached out. Her magic, always pulsing just beneath her skin, surged up without much of a prompt, ready and pulsing in tune with her heartbeat. She pushed it out, carefully searching for the magical signature of her wife, trying to localize it. A feat more easily said than done. While Ada had a very identifiable, and by this point, familiar flavor to her magic, Hecate had noticed a long ago that separating Ada’s energy from that of the school was nearly impossible at best of days. They were intertwined, curled around each other, becoming more closely linked as the time went on. 

But she  _ could  _ spot it. Her breathing picked up as she sent a firmer wave of her magic out, attempting and eventually succeeding in locking down the trademark flash of comforting energy, thrumming somewhere close by.

“She is inside the school’s boundaries.”

Dimity’s eyebrow shot up. “How can you tell? I couldn’t -”

_ “ _ She is  _ here.”  _ Her eyes open, Hecate brushed past the stunned woman standing in the doorway. “And you said she hasn’t been seen inside the building?”

Still baffled, Dimity managed to nod, stepping aside to let the deputy pass. 

“So logic dictates she must be somewhere outside.”  _ Why  _ she would be, Hecate couldn’t tell, but it wasn’t the most pressing matter at the moment. “I shall go and scout the surrounding area.”

Without waiting for a reply, she rushed out through the door, down the stairs leading to the front yard, and straight towards the small broom shed they had near the main gates. Staff members kept their brooms there, separated from the students’, more readily available in cases where time was at the essence. She glanced towards Ada’s stall, and found nothing. 

Quickening her pace, Hecate half-sprinted to grasp her own broom. After a quick once-over, she stepped back outside, settled down with a balanced pose, and kicked herself off the ground. There was a bit of a wind trying to toss her to the side, but by making a few minor adjustments she was soon soaring higher, up to the towers of the castle, eyes turned to look over the open fields surrounding the school.

In the daylight, it was difficult to see the layer of protective magic spreading over and around the academy’s grounds. It went on for miles, the most distant parts of it eventually stopping to a border of a large forest. Between the trees and the castle was an even, open scenery of land, now baked in the warm light of sun. And against the cloudless sky, Hecate saw a small figure, halted higher than she herself was currently flying, a good 200 meters above the ground. The sight of a blond hair and pink dress were enough to roll a heavy weight off her chest. 

_ At least she is home. _

Her broom picked up speed as she turned it to incline. Few gushes of wind attempted to rock her again, curling around the helm of her dress. Hecate paid them little mind, merely leaning in deeper to accelerate her speed. Within minutes, she had made it close enough to Ada for a sound to carry over the distance.

“Ada!  _ Thank goodness _ , we -” Halting in mid-air, Hecate frowned. “... Are you alright?”

Ada, from a quick glance, seemed to be relatively unharmed. And yet, there was an odd expression on her face, not to mention the way her fingers were practically drilled into the broom on which she sat upon. 

Her smile, clearly forced, was not much of a comfort either. 

“Oh, Hecate!” Carefully, Ada corrected her grip, moving slightly backwards to stabilize her posture. “In a nick of time, as always.”

“Should hope so,” Hecate said, taking a better look at the way Ada’s pose swayed. “I take it you’re not floating out here merely for the fun of it?”

Rolling her eyes, Ada tightened her position again. “How observant of you.” They were both keenly aware of Ada’s distaste for flying. “It’s my broom. Something seems to be... off.”

Hecate steered her own broom closer. Her eyes roamed over the wooden frame, looking for any out of place marks or dents. 

“It looks fairly fine. Outwards, at least.”

Ada nodded, a frown on her face as she continued her balancing act. “That much I’ve noted. Everything worked in perfect manner at the start of my flight, but a few miles back it began to descend without a command. After I made it inside the school’s borders, I figured it’d be safer to stop before anything else fails.”

“A reasonable conclusion,” Hecate said, floating herself closer still. “Why did you not inform me? I could have arrived much sooner, had I known.”

She grew curious once she noticed the way her wife’s cheeks blushed, a veil of blond hair slumping down to cover the spreading flushing. 

“I... There were some complications with that matter as well.”

After a moment of merely watching in bewilderment, Hecate’s eyes finally landed on the small saddlebag, secured near the back end of Ada’s broom. Locked for the flight, and entirely out of reach while airborne. 

She couldn’t help a tiny hint of grin from appearing.

“You put your mirror into the bag.”

The blush deepened. “Well, I -”

Hecate’s smirk grew wider. “After I have asked, multiple times, that you’d keep it within an arm’s reach.” She held back her full smile, nearly failing. “Say, in your cape’s pocket. It is, after all, called a _ pocket mirror _ -”

“Yes, yes,  _ quite! _ ” It was rather comical, the way Ada’s pout had changed so little over the years. “It was my intention! But my takeoff was a bit delayed, so I did not have time to look through everything.”

Relaxing with amusement, Hecate threw her leg over the broom’s staff and faced Ada with a raised eyebrow. “You left your packing to the last minute.”

Ada’s cheek turned rosier still. “... I started yesterday.”

“But didn’t finish until the very moment you had to leave.”

The exaggerated sigh aimed at her was an answer enough.

With a good-natured hum, Hecate waved her hand, gesturing to the defective broom. “Regardless, it is quite clear you can’t safely continue on flying.” She glanced down, noting the location they’d come to float above. “We are a fair distance away from the school, forty-five minute walk at the very least.”

Ada shook her head. “I don’t think I can manage to land. After the initial loss of altitude, the movements of the broom weren't very steerable.” Her fingers pressed tighter around the wood. Her face, flush with pink a moment earlier, was turning pale at the thought.

Seeing the change in Ada’s mood, Hecate’s own smirk died down, and a more severe expression soon took its place as she began to piece together a solution. “Would it be impossible to try and drop some height, as a test?”

There was another shake of a head. “I’d rather not, given a choice.”

“Alright,” Hecate shifted her weight to prompt her own broom to circle Ada’s with slow pace. “How about towing? We could use a rope to tie the two staffs together.”

Ada frowned. “You wouldn’t think balancing to be an issue?”

“It might, depending on the wind conditions.” Lifting one finger into the air, Hecate felt the passing breeze rushing over them. “If you’re feeling uncertain however, we’ll think of something else.”

“Please, if at all possible,” Ada muttered as a blast of wind nearly knocked her off-balance.

Coming to a stop right beside Ada, Hecate measured the staff underneath herself, her eyes moving back and forth between the two brooms.

“We could always share.”

Ada’s head snapped upwards. “I beg your pardon?”

“Share a broom.” Dragging herself forward, Hecate motioned the empty space behind her back. “There is enough space for two, if we leave your luggage here for now.”

With a look of uncertainty, Ada watched as Hecate moved to accommodate her. She swallowed, making quick calculations in her head. “Have you ever flown with another person?”

Hecate shrugged, her face passive. “Once or twice.”

“And you’re quite certain you’d be able to steer and manage the balance, even with two people on board?”

Coming up with some fast math herself, Hecate took a couple seconds to answer. “If we place ourselves properly, I don’t see it being a problem.”

“Alright then,” Ada said, clearing her throat. Carefully, she leaned back, looking at the drop between her and Hecate with doubt. “Should I, uhh... How do you suggest we...”

Hecate forced her broom to drop some altitude to make it easier for Ada to slip off from her seat, and bridge the gap. “First, lift both of your legs to the left side.”

Ada did as she was told while maintaining the white-knuckled grip she had of her broom. “Then what?”

They were face to face, not much space separating the two staffs. With her movement slow, Hecate reached out, offering a steady hand. 

“Let go with one of your hands, and grab mine. You need to push yourself off at the time of my pull.”

Her face paling yet again, Ada’s breath hitched. It took every ounce of her concentration to maintain the evenness in her voice. “And if... If I mistime it?”

Hecate’s hand remained steady. “You won’t.”

With a shaky gasp, Ada pried her left hand away from the broom. Hecate could see how much effort it took for her wife not to immediately replace it back down, and thrusted her own hand out further before the thought had a chance to take proper root.

“Just hold on tight, and push yourself off.”

After a moment of hesitation, Ada did.

There were a few blood-seizing seconds of weightlessness, a firm tug at her arm, and a surprisingly solid feel of wood where she suddenly realized she was seated. Without missing a beat, Hecate turned partly around, confirming that Ada had landed safely onto the working broomstick. 

“You alright?”

After her breathing had started to calm down, Ada huffed, an amused, choked laughter rising from her chest as she pressed herself soundly against Hecate’s back. Her arms, shaking slightly, wrapped themselves around the thin waist.

“This is a  _ second  _ time today you’re asking me that same question, dearest.”

Her small, relieved smile returning, Hecate corrected her form and set out to fly them back to the castle. “Well, I feel it is rather my duty to keep track of such things.”

A hushed chuckle from behind her only served to widen her smirk. “Oh? As my wife, or my deputy head?”

Even though she knew Ada wouldn’t be able to see it, Hecate rolled her eyes. “ _ Both, _ I’d hope.”

Yet another laughter, and after it’d ended, Hecate could feel the broom tilt lightly, signaling to her that Ada was most likely looking back towards her own broom, left hanging alone in the air. Gentle words spoken right beside her ear confirmed her suspicion.

“I do feel odd, just leaving it there.”

Hecate shrugged, adjusting her steering. “We’ll have Drill to come over and have a look.” She flew them up a few meters, riding along the aiding wind. “She will understand it’s soul life better than either of us do.”

The broom moved again as Ada returned her gaze forward. “Cannot really argue with your logic, love.” Hecate couldn’t see her expression, but the glimmer of glee was obvious in Ada’s tone. “Although I must say, I  _ do  _ see great potential in this particular way of traveling.” 

Hecate let out a silent chuckle of her own. “Do you now?”

“I do indeed. It appears to do wonders to my fear of heights.” The lilt in Ada's voice grew teasing. “Perhaps we should make this a regular arrangement?”

With her dominant hand firmly on the broomstick, Hecate placed the other on top of the secure arms circulating her. Her smile turned tender as the early autumn breeze danced around them, closing the two of them into a world of their own. She shut her eyes, just for a fleeting moment, and enjoyed the presence so tightly pressed against her.

“Perhaps we should.”

**Author's Note:**

> All feedback and critique are greatly appreciated!


End file.
